


For The Better

by Requireminx



Category: Fallout 4
Genre: Fluff, Kid!Fic, Major Spoilers, Multi, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-08
Updated: 2016-03-08
Packaged: 2018-05-25 10:52:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,922
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6192175
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Requireminx/pseuds/Requireminx
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Archer was not prepared. Not for blowing up the damn institute, not for the small child in front of her calling her "mom" Definitely not that.</p>
            </blockquote>





	For The Better

For once, maybe the first time in her life, Archer couldn’t charm her way out of this one. Everything was chaos. Alarms were blaring and evacuation orders were repeating over the intercom. Preston was talking to her, but she didn’t hear it. She only saw him. And he saw her.

“Mom!” The child _(Shaun?)_ said, he was scared too. “Please! Take me with you!”

Archer couldn’t speak. She couldn't move. She just condemned her terminally ill son to die in the ruin of his own life’s work. It was already too much. This..

“General! ” Preston put a hand on Archer’s shoulder. “We have to move.”

Archer took a step forward, and collapsed onto her knees, hugging….... Shaun. Shaun! She didn’t give a damn that he was a synth. Her partner was one, and she knew it didn’t mean shit. Her eyes were watering, but she knew this wasn’t the time for a tender moment.

“Shaun.. We’re going to get out out of here, Ok? You’ll be alright.” She said, moving back and placing a hand on his cheek.

“Ok, mom” Shaun said. Archer felt like she’d been shot every time Shaun called her “mom”

“I- Sturges?” Archer got up, turning to him. She has a duty to do. “Let’s get the hell out of here”

Sturges gave a quick nod and began fiddling with the console. “I’ll relay you and Preston up to the detonation point. After that me and your son will meet you at the castle. We can finally get him some normal clothes”

Archer stopped. After all this, after she had everything taken away from her. She couldn’t be separated from Shaun again. But. This was her job. Finally, the Commonwealth could be free from the Institute. One more sprint to the finish line.

She forced a nod, and went to push the button. She couldn’t look at Shaun, not now. If she looked, she wouldn’t be able to look away. Right now, she had to do this. “See you on the other side, Sturges”

* * *

 

As she watched the institute go up, the wave of heat and wind rushing past her, she only had one thing on her mind. Shaun. She wanted to jump off that building right then and there, to run and run, until she gets to the castle. To be back at sanctuary, with her friends, Danse, Maccready. Shaun. They’re probably worried sick. She idly wondered if they felt the explosion from there.

“Preston. Let’s go” she said, turning away from the settling crater. Even though the institute used the Commonwealth as their own rats to experiment on, she couldn’t be happy for all that was lost in that blast. _Who_ was lost.

* * *

 

As the Castle got closer and closer on the horizon, Archer got more nervous. What’s next? She’ll bring Shaun to Sanctuary. Then what? Danse, Maccready, Shaun, and her will live happily ever after? Not a chance. She’ll have to continue being the General, a Paladin, Charmer, and now? A mom.

The entire trip was made in relative silence, and it was getting on Archer’s nerves. “Preston?”

He jumped. Clearly he wasn’t expecting her to say anything. “Do you need something, General?” He was worried. Rightly so, Archer figured. Preston was so good to her. He was good to everybody. A rare trait, in the wastelands.

The closer they got to the gates, the faster her pace. She wasn’t aware of Preston, who had begun jogging to keep up with her. Minutemen greeted her at the gates, triumphant over their victory. She smiled and said what she had to get in the damned gates as quick as she could.

Shaun was with Sturges, he was watching as Sturges hammered the radio tower, explaining things with wild hand gestures. He was wearing a blue striped shirt and jeans that were a little too big for him. The scene was so..normal.

“Shaun! Sturges!” Archer jogged to the boys. Shaun’s face lit up. “Mom!”

When Archer reached Shaun, she hugged him once again. “You doing ok, little buddy?” she murmured.

“I feel better when you’re here” Shaun said, and Archer melted a little more. She was gone already.

* * *

  


The trip home was long, but it gave Archer some much needed time to talk to Shaun. Her, Sturges, and Preston told Shaun stories. She told him that she had met people, amazing people who were now her friends, and some, partners. Stories of fighting off deathclaws, raiders, everything that the commonwealth could throw at them. Shaun also had some spare parts that he tinkered with, that made Archer wonder, how much of him was programmed? Would she tell Shaun that he was a synth if he didn’t already know?  She shook off that worry and thought about when they returned to Sanctuary. How would Danse and Maccready react? She wasn’t too worried about Maccready, even though he didn’t trust synths, he didn’t dislike them. He also knew what it was like to have a child.

But Danse. Danse, the most loyal Brotherhood of Steel Paladin, was already reeling from the discovery that he himself was a synth. Archer was worried, admittedly. Danse would never hurt Shaun, she knew that. But she knew he might not receive Shaun well. There was no doubt, his views on synths and ghouls have changed, but to what extent? Would he love one as his own child? And if she was forced to choose?

Archer wiped away a cold sweat she didn’t even notice form off of her forehead. they were nearing Sanctuary, and she didn’t know if she wanted to return as much as she originally had. There was no turning back though, She couldn’t just take Shaun’s hand and run away.

A large crowd was gathered at the bridge going into Sanctuary. The settlers, Archer’s friends. Danse and Maccready were at the front. The closer they got, the more the crowd cheered. They cheered for the minutemen, for the destruction of the institute. It was ironic to Archer, how the institute thought they were the good guys. They didn’t care about the people. What is a land without the inhabitants?

Archer was pulled into a crushing hug by Danse, Maccready worming his way into the hug afterwards.

“We were so worried” Maccready breathed into her neck. Danse had his face in her hair, even though it must’ve smelled like sweat and grime. “You did it”

“I did. We did. It’s gone” Archer said, kissing Danse then Maccready on the cheeks. She so desperately wanted to lead them into the house and spend the rest of the day in a cuddle pile, but she had another person to take care of. She squirmed out of their arms. Most of the crowd had went back into Sanctuary, opting to ask Sturges about what happened at the Institute and prepare for the celebration.

“Danse, Rob. This is Shaun.” She said, bringing him forward from his place next to Preston. Understandably, they looked at Shaun like a bloatfly had just shit out a deathclaw. They knew about Father, and that the Shaun they were looking at was not _Shaun_. Danse looked uncomfortable. Like that time Cade asked if she’d ever had “relations” with anything non-human and she didn’t really give a straight answer.

Maccready reacted first. He kneeled down, leveling himself with Shaun. “Hey kiddo, welcome to Sanctuary” He smiled gently. “I’m Robert”

Archer let out a breath she didn’t know she was holding in. She looked at Danse. He looked, hesitant, to say the least. At least he wasn’t in power armour. That wouldn’t seem quite as kid friendly.

“Rob?” Archer said. He looked up. “I’m sure you and Shaun can talk for a bit. I’ll be right back” Archer grabbed Danse by the arm and led him a few metres away. Preston, Maccready, and Shaun started to make their way to the workshop, with all the couches and tables.

“Look. Danse.” She took his face in her hands. “I know he’s a synth. But you know better than anyone that being a synth, it doesn’t make you less human. I’m not asking you to love him immediately, hell, you may never fully do that. But please, try. For me, and for him.”

Danse stared at her for a bit, brows furrowed. “I’ll try.”

Archer relaxed a bit. “That’s all I ask. Thank you.” She pecked him on the lips. She took his arm again and led him to where Maccready was talking animatedly, his hands swinging back and forth as he recounted the time where Archer had him dangling off a bridge, trying to reach a fusion core. Shaun was watching with rapt attention. Deacon had joined them at some point and was interjecting every so often, adding here and there.

“Hey Shaun, I have someone you should meet!” Archer sat down on the arm of the couch, across from Shaun. “This is Danse, he comes with me on adventures sometimes”

Danse gave a quick nod and stuck his hand out for a high five.  Archer almost slipped off of the arm of the couch. She had to keep herself from laughing. _He’s trying so hard to make the kid like him, bless his heart. A high five!!_ _From Danse!!_ His hand hovered for a few seconds. Shaun didn’t leave him hanging, though, and grinned up at Danse. His lips quirked upwards and Archer felt like she could just fly away right there. It was so cute, so utterly, so tooth rottingly, so very, domestic. Her boys, all getting along.

* * *

 

By the time the sun had gone set, and the bonfire had died down, Shaun was falling asleep on his seat on one of the logs. Archer didn’t blame him, she was ready to get into bed and never get up again.

Archer got up and stretched. Her back popped in several places.

“I’m just going to take Shaun to bed, I’ll be back” Archer laid a hand on Danse shoulder. There was a spare bed in her house that Shaun could use until they got him a proper room. Maccready was in deep conversation with Hancock, so he probably wouldn’t even notice she was gone. She strode to Shaun, his eyes were slowly closing.

“I’m going to take you to bed, okay?” Archer squat down in front of Shaun. His eyes opened a bit and he nodded sleepily. “Alright, just put your arm here and-” Archer hefted him up, arms under his legs and back. He was….. surprisingly light. Did they feed him enough at the institute? Do synths even gain weight? Do they-

“Hey mom?”

Archer was taken from her thoughts. “Yeah buddy?

“When I’m older, could you take me along with you?”

Arched smiled down at him. “Of course, Shaun.”

Shaun’s eyes slid back shut. She nudged the door open with her hip. The bed was in what used to be Shaun’s room, which Archer found sort of ironic. No one could have predicted that a new kid would join them, let alone Shaun.

Archer lay Shaun down on the bed, bending down to pull off his shoes and lay her jacket on him. There was no blanket on the spare bed, she would have to get him one later. Thankfully it wasn’t too cold, and the jacket would keep Shaun warm enough. She leaned her weight on her good leg, and watched Shaun for a moment. The gentle rise and fall of his chest was comforting. Again, her whole world had changed. But this time, for the better.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you #deaconSquad for the love while writing this!! I love u all <3  
> May continue this, Idk


End file.
